Chapter 135: Carefree Gift

  Niu Laogen took out a few silver coins and smiled: "This is our gift, don't despise it..."

  Zhong Gensheng hurriedly let the four treasures settle the account, and his heart was truly moved. Niu Laogen is now genuinely happy for the Zhong family, he knew it himself.

  Tian Guihua saw him take out a few silver coins, and his eyes were already wide with excitement. Which family in the village wasn't satisfied with just 50 or 60 cents? And they even brought their whole family to eat?! The Li family had relatively fewer people, but they only gave a gift of 100 cents. She had heard someone say it before, but now seeing Niu Laogen being so generous, she gritted her teeth in anger. A whole two silver coins! How many meals would they have to eat to make up for this?!

  Tian Guihua originally came to the banquet with a psychology of taking advantage, but now she is deeply worried. This old guy is really generous, she is stingy at home and can't bear to eat or wear good things, but in the end, she let him give the Zhong family an advantage, which is unbearable for her. However, at this time, she also had to put it in her heart.

  Zhong Gensheng had already noticed that her eyes were not quite right, but he didn't pay attention to it and just smiled at Niu Laogen saying: "Quickly come in and have some tea, eat some melon seeds, the banquet is about to start..."

  He didn't even greet Tian Guihua, and Tian Guihua gritted her teeth in anger, but still sat down at the women's table. She looked around and soon realized that Niu Xiaohua was not there. Just as she was about to take three daughters-in-law to find Niu Xiaohua, she was stopped by someone at the table.

  The woman opposite wasn't a simpleton either, and had also quarreled with Tian Guihua before. Now that she saw her, how could she let her off? She just smiled and said: "Tian's family is indeed generous, no wonder they're relatives by marriage, even the gifts are worth one or two silver coins..."

  As soon as the words came out, they caused a burst of laughter from the people at the table. Tian Guihua's face and her three daughters-in-law had already turned iron-green and white, but the children in the family were still young and didn't understand what was going on, so they just played with the village kids in the courtyard, running around and having fun.

  Just as Tian Guihua was gritting her teeth to find a retort, someone else jumped in and sneered: "What's this nonsense about being relatives? The Zhongs don't acknowledge that at all. Niu Xiaohua was bought back by the Zhongs, where did this 'relatives' business come from..."

  Another burst of laughter, Tian Guihua's face turned purple, now who in the village doesn't know that she had an affair with the Zhong family. At first, some people suspected that Da Bao and Niu Xiaohua were really involved, but as they gossiped more and more, they gradually came to their senses and realized the subtlety of it all. So every laugh was a merciless one, each face filled with mockery, especially those eyes that were raised in disdain, full of contemptuous meaning...

  "Isn't that right? What's this about a daughter-in-law?! A woman chimed in with a smile: "I heard a few days ago that Niu Xiaohua called He Dangniang 'mother', and they're raising her like their own daughter. Otherwise, why would she be calling her 'mother' now when she hasn't even gotten married yet? Tian Dangniang, do you know about this?"

  Tian Guihua's eyes were wide with anger, she was about to retort fiercely, but was pulled back by Niu Wangshi, and only then did she come to her senses, remembering what Niu Laogen had told her that morning. She suppressed her anger and forced herself to calm down.

  Everyone in the village is here, she can't make a fool of herself here, otherwise she'll not only be laughed at but also provoke Niu Laogen, who is absolutely strict with her when it comes to his daughter...

  Everyone was chatting and laughing, each with a sarcastic tone, and they were all watching the commotion. It was truly lively, just looking at Tian Guihua's facial expression made one feel that this world was really so delightful...

  Tian Guihua reluctantly led the three daughters-in-law to change tables again. The people at this table only made cutting remarks and gave disdainful looks, occasionally bursting into laughter during their conversations. Tian Guihua could only pretend not to hear anything...

  The Zheng family in the village also came, and Zheng's wife even generously brought 500 coins as a gift. Although she was reluctant, she had to save face, besides, she still needed to ask the Zhong family to sell her braised sauce, which made their braised meat business easier to do. Now she goes out to set up stalls every day, and 50 kilograms of braised meat are basically sold out quickly. Although she doesn't make much money every day, it's easy and relaxing, and the accumulated income is not bad in a year. Zheng's wife thought about it and was satisfied.

  As long as she doesn't fantasize about that braised pork belly, her life is actually quite good.

  Zhong Gensheng smiled and said: "Quickly sit down, we'll start the banquet soon..."

  Zheng Tufu went straight to the men's side and sat down, while Zheng Niangzi came to that table and was immediately surrounded by the women, who all smiled and said: "You have the Zhong family's sauce, your husband must have made a lot of money too?!"

  Zheng Niangzi burst out laughing, thoroughly enjoying the feeling of being envied and resented by others. With a smile, she said: "No matter how much money can be made, it's just hard-earned money after all. The income is only slightly better than yours... compared to the Zhong family, it's not even worth mentioning..."

  It's a bit better, but this remark is really humble and undeserved. The smiles on the faces of several women present couldn't be held back, and they laughed: "Zheng Niangzi is really humble, your husband kills pigs every day, and you sell braised meat every day, don't you make money?!"

  Zheng Niangzi was good at getting along with others, she had always been different from Tian Guilhua, taking a soft knife that made people hurt and couldn't hold their face, smiling back: "......That's also because my husband has the skill to kill pigs, otherwise, hey, you think everyone can eat this meal..."

  The woman's face changed, and she saw Zheng Niangzi laughing with a trembling flower branch. She was annoyed in her heart and said: "Is it true that you have a good relationship with the Zhong family? Why did they sell you the package of sauce for one or two silver coins? When their family slaughtered pigs, they didn't call your husband from the same village, but instead called Wang Butcher from the neighboring village?"

  This sentence really stirred up a hornet's nest, it was Zheng Niang's heart disease, and as soon as she mentioned it, her face turned red with rage, almost bursting out. However, she still had some rationality and knew that this was the Zhong family's courtyard, so she had to consider their face. Zheng Niang coldly sneered and said: "At least I have the ability to spend money to buy this sauce back and make a profit from it, and the Zhong family is willing to give me this face. But what about you? Does your family have the ability?! What's the use of just being jealous?! You only talk but don't do anything... Your husband looks quite honest, but your mouth is really vicious. If you're capable, then go and do it yourself! Why be jealous of my family's business?"

  "You..." The woman's face turned red with rage, and she looked like she was about to jump up. Afraid that things would get out of hand and the meal would be ruined, the others quickly stepped forward to restrain her, saying: "Stop arguing, the banquet has started, haven't you seen the dishes being served?!"

  The woman finally stopped, and Zheng Niangzi coldly smiled without even giving her a glance.

  The two dogs on this side started helping to serve dishes and set the table, opening up ten tables at once. They were busy with their feet hitting the back of their heads, but they were also very energetic.

  "Niu Li saw this side quarrel, whispered: "Mother, Zheng's wife..."

  Tian Guihua glanced at her disdainfully and said, "Recently, she's become even more arrogant, letting this little prostitute run wild in the village..."

  Niuji smiled and said, "One day, no more than 50 catties of braised meat can be sold, and the spice package still costs one or two silver coins a day. I really don't know how she is so proud..."

  Niú Wáng shì zhǐ shì piē piē zuǐ, bù guǎn zěn me yang, rén jiā zhuàn qián shì zhēn de, shuō zhè xiē suān huà, chú le zì jǐ wú nài, hái néng bǎ tā zěn me yang ne?!

  So noisy and lively... On the other side, they had already started serving dishes. The first dish was a sour cabbage fish hot pot. Everyone's eyes widened in surprise, except for Li Zheng and Niu Laogen, who were nonchalant about it. They had eaten this kind of dish before, and it was perfect for a cold winter's day like today. Especially since it was early winter, they were still eating outside in the courtyard...

  "This is sour cabbage fish hot pot..." Er Gouzi served the dishes while smiling and reporting the dish names, and at the same time also brought out braised meat and red-cooked pork.

  Everyone couldn't help but feel that the Zhong family was extremely generous, with not only a full plate of meat, but two plates, followed by various small dishes and steamed dishes, braised dishes, and a whole table full.

  When the meal began, everyone first tasted the most eye-catching sour fish pot, not only was the fish tender and the bones were removed, even the sour vegetables had a different flavor. The taste was both sour and spicy and delicious, it really made people want to swallow their tongues. After eating this dish, the table immediately became chaotic, and even the soup was divided cleanly.

  Zheng Tufu ate the fish with a stunned expression, and after a while, he said: "How did this country girl from the Zhong family manage to make something so delicious? No wonder she can earn money like that..."

  Zheng's daughter-in-law felt unwell after eating, but she thought that many things had been clarified and she couldn't help but agree with Zheng's husband. In fact, not only did they think so, but everyone else did too. They just felt that this meal was simply fantastic, but also quite painful, especially after eating such a delicious dish, it would be heartbreaking to go back to eating plain vegetables, no matter how you thought about it.

  The Zhong family's courtyard was large, but once the meal started, it took ten tables to finish. The women ate some dishes and then left the table, changing tables quickly, but the men drank small wine, chatted and ate very slowly, so they opened more than ten tables, and surprisingly, they didn't finish until late afternoon, when even the sunset had risen. Everyone gradually dispersed, leaving only the Li Zheng family, the Niu Laogen family, and Wang Tufu.

  Wang Tufu was still slaughtering pigs and wouldn't be able to return until very late, while Lǐ Zhèng was chatting with Chūn Xiāng and Niú Xiǎo Huā in the house. They were cooking a small meal inside, and Lǐ Zhèng's wife was delighted to see this scene, so she also stayed behind to help He ā Xiù with her work.

  But Tian Guihua was not willing to leave without seeing her daughter, and thought that no matter what, she had to urge her to steal the recipe again, and at the same time, explore the secrets of the Zhong family's kitchen.